Intertwined
by jin0uga
Summary: For rwbybomb21. Enter Ruby Rose, a world famous mercenary who shoots first and talks later. Hired by Ozpin to lead a team of girls in Beacon, she crosses paths with a ex-assassin who wants to start over and put the past behind her. With help from Nora, Blake begins to find out there is more to Ruby than meets the eye. Three shot. Mercenary!Ruby. Cold and OOC Ruby. [Complete]
1. Chapter 1

"Alright alright, _I give_!" Roman yelped. "My _arm_! Dust, just stop-"

"You picked the wrong store to rob." Ruby deadpanned, tilting her head sideways to avoid his flailing arm while putting extra pressure on the one that was pinned against his back. "You owe me a hundred lien for breaking my headphones, asshole."

The thief felt his throat close up as the searing pain rippled through his arm and tried not to lose consciousness. He would be damned if he got arrested after being taken down by a fucking _kid_. He whimpered when the pressure on his arm was suddenly lifted, his bones almost sighing in relief. The relief was then transformed into sheer agony when she lifted him with one arm and threw him on the ground. She finished it by stomping on his hand.

The sound of his wrist snapping was like music to her ears.

"There." Ruby watched as the thief keened from the pain, cradling his broken wrist. He lifted his head to glare at her, and she returned it with a cold stare of her own.

Ruby crossed her arms over her black, bullet proof vest and snarled. "You send your men after me again, and the only thing left to bury will be your head."

His glare wavered slightly at the threat. "I didn't send anyone after you! I don't even know who you are." Roman seethed. The pain was far too intense for him to even get up, so he just lay on the cold wet cement, arguing with a girl who had enough strength to shatter his arm, and maybe even snap his neck. He blamed the poor decision making on all the blood rushing from his head to his arm.

"Oh?" She said, looking genuinely surprised. "That's good. Which means if I kill you right now, there wouldn't be any repercussions, would there?" Her lips twisted into a small smirk. "That's the best news I've heard all night."

She reached behind her and brought out her weapon, and with a small click, the rectangular box of metal began to unfurl itself. Red metal and silver blades soon took the shape of a crescent moon, and he watched in thinly veiled fear as another set of blades settled under the first one. It looked like it weighed a ton but Ruby held it like a master would, not a trace of hesitation or exertion on her pale, youthful face.

The emotionless mask she wore made her seem like a puppet, and the sight of it chilled Roman's blood.

"Wait wait wait, can't we talk about this?!" He began crawling backwards, gritting his teeth in pain when he fell on his broken wrist. "I have connections, I can set you up and give you _anything_ you want-"

"And if what I want is your blood on my blade?" Ruby twirled crescent rose in an arc, making a swish sound as it cut through the air. "Don't make promises you can't keep. I hate liars." She murmured.

And then she disappeared in a burst of rose petals, the image of her phasing out of existence only to appear right in front of him. Ruby slashed downwards, expecting her blade to slice him in half. But instead, looked up to see a wall of stone shielding him, a large, smooth cut going straight down its middle.

"Miss Rose." Glynda stepped into view, looking _very_ unimpressed. "I know that old habits die hard but please do not think that murder, even if the target is a criminal-" Her gaze flitted to the man cowering behind the wall of stone she'd made, "-will allow you to get away with it. This is not a battlefield. And I implore you to act like it." She finished sternly.

"Murder…it's such a strong word." Ruby gave her a mocking look as crescent rose folded back into its gun form. "It would imply that this was premediated, right? As it stands, I don't even know who he is. He attacked and I defended." She shrugged. "You make it seem like I'm some sort of psychopath."

Glynda sighed, her semblance rushing to fix the road when she waved her weapon. Roman fell back with a relieved groan, the feeling of imminent death leaving him.

"You have my apology." The huntress responded curtly, "But I'll suggest that you tread lightly. The Vale military already have their eyes on you, which means they're keeping tabs on us as well. Your actions will reflect on the headmaster, so I hope that you'll take them into account."

"Noted." Ruby replied, rolling her shoulders.

"Well then, let's go." The sound of sirens made their heads perk up, and they stared at the blue and red lights flashing in the distance. "It looks like he will be taken care of."

To her surprise and utter shock, Ruby suddenly took out a gun and pointed it at the downed criminal. The resounding gunshot echoed throughout the empty street, accompanied by an ear splitting scream, the man now cradling his now bleeding calf. The ex-mercenary was about to unload a second bullet in his other leg when the gun was ripped out of her grasp by an absolutely furious Glynda, who was glaring daggers- no, _scimitars_ at her.

She shrugged.

"I was just making sure that he wouldn't get away." Ruby gestured to her gun. "I'm doing them a service. Now if you please. _Buckshot_ doesn't like to be held by strangers."

* * *

Her 'new' life had finally begun. Ruby stretched her sore joints as soon as she got off the airship. She rolled her eyes when the passengers of said airship gave her a wide berth, likely afraid of her after she caved in someone's face when they'd pushed her into the wall. She snorted. She should have made Ozpin prepare a private charter for her. The man might have hired her to lead a team of green faced students, but he was probably the best employer she had to date. He payed generously and didn't threaten to kill her. That was enough to get Ozpin into her good books.

Wiping off the last traces of blood from her knuckles, she placed her hand on Crescent rose and took in her surroundings.

"Beacon academy." Ruby breathed in at the sight of her new school, street lights lining almost every road, slender towers of grey jutting skyward. It was truly a sight to behold, and she eyed the impressive structure with a low whistle. Well, this place certainly had money to burn.

She glanced at the gaggle of noisy students in front of her, all of them making their way to the main hall. They each wore an armour of some kind, some fully decked out in metal while others had smaller ones, like elbow or knee guards. It wasn't to say that there were none without any sort of metal guards though. She glanced at the loud mouth who'd just walked past her with a group of friends. The girl had a brilliant golden mane, and to Ruby's amusement, her risqué outfit looked to be more suitable for a club rather than a combat school.

She glanced down at herself. "Well…it's not like I can judge." She muttered wryly.

Ruby was dressed comfortably, donned in a loose dress shirt that mostly covered up her muscles (it was a lovely shade of grey she really liked), complete with black dress pants and red sneakers. It was an odd combination, but what mattered most was that she liked it. It was definitely a large contrast to her military grade outfit she'd used to wear, like bulletproof vests and nylon jackets, not to mention the flame resistant rayon trousers with enough belt loops to hold an army's worth of knives and grenades.

A scrawny blonde suddenly stumbled past her, toppling into a nearby trashcan. The people that passed him tossed him disgusted looks as sounds of retching filled the air. Ruby snorted, shaking her head. Taking out a pair of stylish red aviator shades she'd bought on one of her missions to mistral, she slipped them on and continued toward the main building, not noticing the stares that followed after her.

She neatly sidestepped a girl with an absurd amount of luggage, lightly pushing the topmost bag with her finger. The previously wobbling tower of bags no longer looked like it was about to topple over, and she felt her eyebrows rise when the owner of said bags shot her a dark look.

' _The Schnee heiress_.' Ruby observed with surprise. The girl let out an angry huff, the vein in her forehead visible as she pushed the cart of luggage away while mumbling angrily under her breath.

' _It looks like anything is possible with enough lien. How surprising that Mr Schnee even allowed his heir to go within ten feet of this place.'_

She did work under the man, in her gold digging days where she accepted any job as long as it payed well. He was everything the media said he was. Cold, determined, arrogant. And also, extremely racist. Ruby wasn't a good person, no one who killed for a living could ever describe themselves that way, but that man was in a league of his own. Even the small fling with his oldest daughter Winter hadn't been enough incentive to keep working for him. She decided to cut her losses and high tail out of there as soon as her contract ended.

If there was one thing Ruby hated more than liars, it would be people like him. Smug, racist and hypocritical pricks who let others do the dirty work for them. Most of the mercenaries tended to stay away from these types of employers. If they ever came under fire, they would sell out the people working under them in a heartbeat if it meant saving their own hides.

Lost in thought, Ruby pushed her way through the thick throng of students crowding near the mouth of the hall. The crowd was too thick, so she ended up getting stuck amidst the hormonal gaggle of sheep. She frowned. Places like this made her head hurt. The amount of noise and stupidity were overbearing.

Thankfully at six foot one, she easily towered over majority of the girls and a fair amount of boys, and saw what was the holdup was. Apparently the blond boy who she'd seen vomiting had gotten hit over the head by the Schnee heiress's unhealthy amount of luggage, and was now laying comatose under the pile. A few of the older students on duty were helping the unconscious boy and the extremely embarrassed heiress to pick up the bags.

Ruby snorted. All this and the initiation hadn't even started. The boy was going to be done in today, if not, tomorrow.

"Hey, can you please move?" A calm voice addressed her. "I need to get in."

Ruby turned to the source of the voice, and looked down. The girl was short, but tall enough that she reached her shoulders. The black bow on her head gave her a few inches in height, and it did a pretty good job of tickling Ruby's nose.

"The entrance is blocked." She replied. "No one's getting in or out."

"Oh." The girl slouched, an irritated expression replacing her neutral one. And…did her bow just twitch? "Sorry to bother you then." With that, she turned on her heel and forced her way out of the crowd, disappearing behind another bunch of students who had joined the throng.

Ruby stared after her. She looked very familiar for some reason. Her gut instincts never lied. Was it her voice that jolted her memory? She didn't quite know. Deciding that it was worth checking out, and better than wasting her time in this meat sack, she shouldered through the students and exited on the other side of the crowd, purposely stomping on someone's foot when they refused to get out of the way. The pained scream that followed afterwards succeeded in relaxing her abit.

' _Now…where did you go?'_ Ruby's cold stare combed over the court, littered with students coming to and fro from the airship drop-off. She caught sight of the end of the black bow fluttering as the girl turned around the corner and made to go after her, when someone suddenly grabbed her sleeve.

Her hidden blade was out in an instant, and Ruby barely twitched as she pressed the sharp end against her assailant's neck. The move was executed in less than a second, and she'd taken the liberty of pulling the attacker closer to her so the blade wouldn't be seen. Ozpin's lady advisor would not be pleased at her causing an uproar on the first day of work.

"You better let go of me before I slit your-" Cautious silver eyes met delighted turquoise ones. Ruby's voice tapered off in confusion. "-Nora?"

"YOU'RE HERE!" Nora's scream of happiness damn near took her ear off. "EVERYONE, MY BEST FRIEND IS HEREEEE-" The students around them jumped at the loud voice, and quickly walked away when Nora turned her gaze on them.

Ruby shook her head wryly and placed a hand on her shoulder, the girl practically vibrating in excitement. "Hey Nora. It's great to see you again." Ruby said, and yelped when the shorter girl hugged her waist, crushing the life out of her.

"I missed you soooo much!" She squealed, burying her head in Ruby's chest. "We can finally do a _sleepover_! And I have a whole bunch of new sloth pictures to show you! Ren helped me to print them."

Nora finally deigned to let go of her bestest friend ever, and grinned at the smile on Ruby's face. People were often surprised that she could get the normally cold girl to show some sort of emotion other than sarcasm, but they just didn't know Ruby as well as she did. Nora knew she was a total marshmallow under that prickly exterior. And man did Nora love her marshmallows!

"Where's your stuff? Did Ren already take them inside for you?" Ruby asked, her smile growing even wider when Nora continued to flail around in excitement. Her excitement for everything was something she found extremely endearing.

"Yep!" Nora suddenly tilted her head up to stare at her with wide eyes. "I have an idea! Let's sleep together tonight, it's been so long since we did it!" She said happily.

Ruby sighed when she heard a series of chokes and coughs around them, and glared menacingly at a few of them who started snickering. They sunk into themselves and skittered away when they saw the look on her face, much to her immense satisfaction.

"Alright, we can do that." Ruby agreed, patting Nora's head. "But I need to get my bag first. I'm supposed to pick them up from the staff inside-" She pointed to the entrance to the main hall which was still blocked off by the crowd. "So we can't have a sleepover unless we get in."

The cheerful look on Nora's face was suddenly replaced by a very determined one, and she watched as the girl who was only 5' 1 scatter the throng of people by bringing out Magnhild, and swinging it wildly.

"MOVE, OR I'LL BREAK YOUR LEGS!" She screamed.

Needless to say, everyone was unwilling to see if the crazy orange haired girl was joking or not. The giant hammer was already proof enough that she _could_ break their legs if she wanted to. And when a taller, scary looking girl with red aviator shades proceeded to fall in step beside her, most of the students couldn't back away fast enough.

* * *

A series of grunts and snores rippled throughout the hall from one end to another, reminding Ruby of the domino effect. Night time in Vale was especially dark, and teachers warned that anyone who decided stroll around at this hour would be sent home immediately.

Thankfully, everyone settled into their sleeping bags when midnight came and went, and Ruby was the only one left awake. Like Glynda had said, old habits die hard. There was never time to rest when one was infiltrating a heavily guarded area, and Ruby was embarrassed to admit that her body was already too used to falling asleep at wee hours of the morning after a successful mission.

She lounged in her sleeping bag beside Nora's, keen eyes scanning the ridiculously humongous hall. It looked even bigger on the inside, and it easily held at least six or seven airships worth of hopeful teenagers. She looked to the right and saw Pyrrha fast asleep next to Ren. The two had hit it off well, the boy's calm and reserved nature a perfect fit for the Mistral champion's anxious, but genuinely nice persona.

Ruby left the two to their own devices after introducing them, well aware that Ren wasn't exactly fond of her. Pyrrha was slightly warmer toward her though, and Ruby appreciated the fact that the girl still thought of them as 'friends' even though they hadn't kept in contact after Ruby got into mercenary work.

It was difficult to hold conversations with someone who travelled around the world on a monthly basis, and Ruby didn't fault the girl for falling out of contact with her. It wasn't as if she tried any harder to send Pyrrha messages either. Her jobs often required long periods of radio silence, and it was too risky to have only one scroll, or number. She stuck to disposable ones, less likely to get caught by the authorities, so it had been too troublesome to keep track of her contacts that weren't prospective employers.

Nora let loose a particularly large snore, and Ruby ruffled her hair like an older sibling might. Seeing that it was almost two am and that all of the students were fast asleep she decided to grab something to drink.

She easily made it to the water fountain; nimbly walking through a bunch of sleeping people was definitely much easier when they weren't highly trained and out for your blood. Ruby proceeded to gulp down several mouthfuls of cold water when she heard a soft splash of water. Senses instantly on alert, she pinpointed that the sound was coming from the toilet. Or more specifically, the female one.

Ruby held her breath, the M9 bayonet already out of its sheath and in her hands. Crescent rose was best weapon she'd ever made, but totting around a giant sniper scythe tended to be unsuitable for stealth missions.

Pressing herself into the wall, she approached the toilet in absolute silence, years of mercenary work showing itself as her mind became a blank slate, her focus and awareness increasing twofold. She slid into the brightly lit bathroom with ease, her figure coiled like a tightly wound spring. She immediately zoned in on a clothed figure on the far end of the bathroom. Ruby made a sound of disbelief and irritation when she realized it was just a student. Doing some nightly beauty regime, no doubt. She slipped the knife back into its sheath, which was strapped to her upper thigh, just in time for the girl to turn and stare straight at her.

Blake felt the blood freeze in her veins as she stared came face to face with the girl she'd met this morning. The ribbon in her hands slipped from her grip, and fell to the ground in a breathless flutter. It reminded Blake of a dying butterfly. Atop her head, cat ears twitched nervously, flattening against her skull when the girl took notice of it. The flicker of surprise in her eyes said enough.

"I…This is…" She felt her throat close up, the feeling of despair already bubbling up inside her. Her new life hadn't even started, and it was already ruined. All she just because had to take off her bow. She had only wanted to give her ears some relief, and it had barely been five minutes since her decision came to bite her in the ass.

She flinched under the cold gaze of the crimson haired girl, and braced herself for the inevitable fallout. Only to hear something even _more_ frightening.

"White Fang. You're a White Fang trigger agent."

At those words, Blake reacted on pure instinct. The discovery of her heritage and her past was just too much. She lunged forward, intent on taking the girl out. If she could just knock her out or make it seem like a dream-

She barely even reached her before Ruby was upon her, arms locking Blake's head in place. The Faunus spluttered when her airway was forcefully cut off, and tried to trip the other girl by flaying about. Unfortunately for her, Ruby was one step ahead, a swift kick to her legs bringing Blake down like a sack of potatoes.

"What's a white fang agent doing here?" Ruby hissed. "Give me a good answer or I'll break your fucking neck."

" _I'm-_ " Blake tried to speak, the headlock she was held in making it difficult to talk, and even merely breathe. "D-Deserter. I'm not White fang anymore."

She fell to the floor, breathing heavily when Ruby let go of her. Silver eyes stared down at the Faunus, gauging her every move. She sighed. No wonder the girl had been so familiar. Some of her more dangerous missions had her tangling with the White fang, so they must have come across each other at some point. She didn't hold any ill intent to those group of vagabonds, but money was money. Killing Faunus were no different from killing humans.

"Ozpin?" She said, slightly amused at the similarity of their situations. The headmaster was either insane, or just plain stupid. An ex-assassin and an ex-mercenary. What a spectacular turn of events.

Blake gulped down generous amounts of oxygen, and glared at her. Ruby quite liked the strength behind those amber eyes.

"Who are you? How did you even-" Blake was interrupted by a sleepy blonde girl stumbling into the toilet. The cat Faunus felt her heartbeat rising once more at the prospect of her heritage being revealed to even _more_ strangers, and started frantically searching for her ribbon. Just as she was about to dive into one of the empty stalls to avoid the blonde, Blake felt her heart jump in surprise when the crimson haired girl suddenly stepped forward.

Blake noted that the girl was _tall,_ surprised that she hadn't taken notice of that fact when they had first met. The girl was large enough to shield her, and Blake's cat ears nearly sagged in relief when the blonde girl's footsteps didn't pause until she was safely out of sight. When the small 'click' of the stall door was heard, Blake was about to shove Ruby away when she felt a pair of calloused hands touch her cat ears.

Her first instinct was to flinch, thinking that they would be pulled roughly, since most of their encounters with humans ended up that way. To her utmost surprise, what followed was a series of soft, strokes that made her inner feline purr. Ruby stepped back with an unreadable expression to observe her handiwork. The black ribbon was now sitting atop the brunette's head, obscuring the cat ears. Blake tentatively reached up to touch it, marvelling at how comfortable it was. It _never_ felt this way when she was the one who tied it.

If Blake wasn't standing in front of a mirror, she wouldn't have known that it was on her head at all. The lack of unbearable tightness around her cat ears, and the missing itchiness that usually plagued her day to day life was enough to stun Blake into silence. Ruby grabbed her wrist, her face deadly serious.

"Let's go."

* * *

They ended up in some empty hallway a little ways from the bathroom. It was deserted, and Ruby made a sound of satisfaction before she shoved Blake against the wall. "Talk. _Now_." She demanded.

Blake scowled, rubbing her sore wrist. The girl had an iron grip, and she felt her hackles rise at her tone of voice. "About what exactly?" She spat, enjoying the look of surprise on the girl's face. "How I ended up here? Or why I'm hiding _this_?" She gestured to her bow, the object giving a small twitch when addressed.

"I could care less about your heritage." Ruby snorted. "I want to know what an ex White Fang member is doing here. Dust, what was Ozpin _thinking_?"

"The headmaster-" Blake swallowed when she realised how loud her voice was getting, "The headmaster offered me a chance to start a new life. No more killing, robbing and _hate_. And I took it. Running away from the White fang doesn't exactly give you much options."

"How would I know that you're not a spy? We got some big names here. Nikos. Schnee. Wait, you're here to kill the heiress aren't you? Her family is the biggest obstacle in Faunus rights, and offing the heir would be a great way to get your revenge." Ruby said, eyes narrowing. If the girl so much as _ran_ , breaking every bone in her body would just be the tip of the iceberg.

"I- what?! _No_! Didn't you hear what I said?" Blake seethed, glaring at her.

"Like I said." Ruby replied coldly, "I need proof."

The girl let out a frustrated sigh, resisting the urge to punch her in the face. "I don't have any. I don't have _anything_."

Ruby paused at the desperation in those words. She shifted her jaw, an idea coming to mind.

"I don't know if you're telling the truth. So I'll leave you alone. _But_ \- if you so much as try to make a move on anyone here, your past and your little secret," Her eyes flitted to stare at the innocent black bow. "Will be broadcasted to everyone. And I'll see to it that you won't be able to show your face in Vale, _ever again_."

Blake swallowed, feeling a small bubble of hatred for the crimson haired girl. Well…she would take what she could get. "Fine. _Fine_. But if my secret gets out, I'll-"

"Do nothing." Ruby pinned her with a glare. "If you try anything, the press will be the last thing to worry about. I'll hunt you down and skin you alive." She growled, half-smirking when the Faunus shrank, slouching in defeat. "Remember. I'll be watching you."

With that, Ruby shot her one last dark look before walking away. Blake stared after her, the feelings of annoyance and frustration frothing in her stomach.

"Who the hell are you?!" She growled, her hands curling into a fist. "God damn it."

* * *

Her name, Blake learned, was Ruby Rose.

When the girl was introduced at the team ceremony, she had been absolutely floored. The hall had fallen silent, the only sound being the soft breathing of the headmaster standing at the podium. He had given everyone a wry smile, and continued the rest of the introductions. Blake was too shocked to even roll her eyes when Weiss Schnee curtsied when Ozpin said her name.

Ruby Rose. The world famous mercenary.

All muscle and no nonsense, she fit every part of a globetrotting gun for hire especially with the red aviator shades perched on her nose. The girl was infamous, rumoured to be the best of the best, the merciless weapon who left behind a mountain of dead bodies on every battlefield she'd stepped on. Blake had been there when the White Fang issued a 'run on sight' order for Ruby. And of course, she had first-hand experience of the terror the girl could cause.

It was supposed to be a simple hit and run job for a low ranked politician who'd taking a liking to torturing Faunus prostitutes. He had hired a small number of body guards, the types that were dime a dozen on streets, but when the team of trigger agents –or assassins, as the civilians called it– broke into the two story manor, they'd found Ruby Rose instead. Back then, her name wasn't as big as it was now so the captain of the mission decided to go one on one with her while he ordered the rest of them spread out to find their target.

Blake was one of the lucky ones. She was jumped by some guards, they were dispatched easily with a few bullets from gambol shroud, and when she went back to the rendezvous point…there was only blood. Half of the trigger team were dead, cut into small bite-sized pieces. The other half were grievously injured, bleeding out of their arms, legs- _everywhere_.

And Ruby had stood in the middle of it all, the head the captain held tightly in her small hands.

Blake shuddered. They ended up failing that mission, but none of them got off badly since the man they were after was killed by Ruby herself when he didn't pay the amount he promised.

The hall was buzzing with noise when Ozpin dismissed them and called for the next students.

After Blake's new team (God, she didn't know whether to laugh or cry) was shuffled off the stage, Ruby turned and pinned them down with a stare that could've frozen water. Even the grumbling Schnee and the happy-go-lucky blonde girl had cowered under the fierce gaze, herself included.

"Listen up. I'm not here to babysit you. If you have any trouble with me, you tell me and we'll deal with it. But if you resort to low brow tactics like calling for _daddy_ -" Weiss stiffened at the jab, "I won't hesitate to put you down. _Permanently_. So act your age. This is a combat school, not a **sorority**. Stay out of my way, and we won't have any problems."

That was all she said before giving them one final look and disappearing in a whirlwind of rose petals.

"Wow…who peed in her coffee?" Yang muttered as the three of them made their way to the dorm. Blake snorted at the mental image while Weiss let out a disgusted groan. The heiress huffed dramatically as she pulled along her cart of bags, the ugly white things piled on top of one another like a building blocks.

"I still cannot believe that she's our leader." She grumbled. "What was the headmaster thinking? Having a _murderer_ lead us."

"Well…we'll just have to get used to it." Blake replied coolly, "But at least we can all agree that Ruby is-"

"A bitch?" Yang grinned.

"Cold. I was about to say cold." Blake chuckled. At least she wasn't the heiress as the partner. She thanked dust for small victories. They kept her sane, at least.

Turning down the hallway, they finally came to a stop in front of their dorm room. Blake looked it over, a wave of reassurance washing over her. This was the start to her new life. Her redemption.

Everyone took in a deep breath as Weiss grabbed the doorknob and pushed it open, the small _creak_ of the hinges making their shoulders tense. The figure of Ruby came into view, the girl bent over as she unpacked her small suitcase. Their faces tightened when she looked in their direction with a raised brow.

Three years with Ruby Rose.

Dust help them all.

* * *

 **A/N:** Okay so this fic is long _long_ over due. A thousand apologies to **rwbybomb21** who has been waiting for my lazy punk ass to write this ladybug fic. Go check out the fic he wrote for me! I had quite alot of fun writing this, but I'm not sure I did cold Ruby right. The second chapter will be up soon, so let me know what y'all think! :D Oh and if any of you want to read some RubyEmerald fic go check out ' _Competition_ ' cuz it's awesome.


	2. Chapter 2

" _Weiss_ -" Yang whimpered as she collapsed into a sweaty heap. "Make her stoppp."

"S-Shut up you oaf." The heiress replied in a tired wheeze, coming to a stop beside her. She planted both hands on her knees, breathing heavily, the end of her ponytail tickling her shins. "Don't you think I've tried?"

"Well try harder…" Yang flipped herself around, the action enough to make her muscles groan in pain. With her back against the floor, she winced when her eyes caught the glare of the overhead lights. "Forget about walking. Any more of this and I won't be able to get up for months."

She groaned, her hands laying uselessly by her sides, palms facing up and knuckles scraping against the training mat.

Weiss used the last dregs of her energy to look up at Blake, who was standing ( _standing_! Can you believe it?) beside her, muttering under her breath.

"Blake. I know we've had our differences but would you please-"

"No." The girl shot down, a small part of her enjoying the look of desperation.

Weiss huffed at the snappish reply. "Yang and I are in no shape to argue with Ruby. So for all our sakes, can you please just…talk to her? I fear that we won't last much longer if this keeps up." A groan escaped her, the heiress starting to sway on her feet.

"You know that she won't listen to me, right?"

Blake glanced over at the still exercising Ruby. The crimson haired leader didn't even look remotely tired, and they'd been at this for at _least_ three hours. Blake herself had shut down after the second hour of non-stop drills. "She barely even talks to me- or us for that matter, outside of class and training, save for that talk after initiation."

"Well-" Weiss shrugged weakly, trying to straighten her back. She failed, and ended up with her hands on her knees again. "You better think of something before our ten minute break is over. If you do it right, you get to read those books of yours, Yang might finally stop whining _,_ and I'll be able to wear my heels again."

Blake sighed but nodded. She had a point. Team RWBY had been going through an intensive exercise regime for months now, a by-product of all of them (save for Ruby) losing to Pyrrha. Their leader hadn't been pleased to sit through three losing matches, two of which that had ended in less than five minutes. And when the ex-mercenary decided to ramp up the intensity of their team training sessions…well, it had become hell on earth.

At the end of each day, the three of them would be out cold before midnight. Blake didn't even have the energy to read anymore! If that wasn't a sign of how bad things were getting, she didn't know what was.

As she contemplated on how to go about this, a loud squeal interrupted her musings. She looked toward the source of the sound and snorted. Jaune was face first on the mat, his sword in Pyrrha's hands. Blake watched as the champion gave Ren and Nora a strained smile, shaking her head in thinly veiled disappointment. Ren responded with a nod, and his orange haired partner gave the redhead a loose shrug.

Catching Nora's eyes, Blake was startled out of her observation when the girl waved at her. Without any warning, the hyperactive girl jogged over, sidestepping the blonde boy on the mat, and stopped in front of her with a large cheerful grin that the cat Faunus couldn't help but reply with a small smile of her own.

"Hey Blake! How has Ruby's training treatin' ya?" Nora gave her a friendly slap on the back which nearly made her to fall over. "It's great for the muscles, I mean just look at these guns."

The orange haired girl flexed her arms. "I can bench five of me!"

"Er, yeah it's great." Blake smiled weakly. "But we think that's it a little too much for us. Yang and Weiss can't endure it for much longer."

She threw a glance behind her at the two figures who were doing fantastic impersonations of wooden planks.

Nora tilted her head in confusion. "Eh, but you look perfectly fine Blake! Are you and my bestie having _private_ training sessions?" She said with a waggle of her eyebrows.

Blake rolled her eyes, her lips pursing at the mere thought of it.

"No, I did something similar to this back at my…old combat school." Flashes of memory took hold of her before she bit her lip to clear her thoughts. "Ruby doesn't mix with us very much." _Or at all_ "But anyway- can you help us out Nora? Can you get her to lay off the training for a while?"

"Okay, but I demand payment!"

"You mean in Lien?" Her empty wallet came to mind. Maybe Weiss would be willing to chip in…

"Nope, I want pancakes. With lots and lots of syrup!" Nora cheered. She froze and looked around them before leaning in, lowering her voice conspiratorially. "But don't tell Ren about this, because he'll be mad."

"It's a deal." Blake nodded, silently apologizing for Nora's partner. They would make it up to him somehow for dealing with the fallout. This was a small price to pay to get some reading done, and finally have a chance to just _relax_. "Thanks, we'll be counting on you."

Nora shook her head, "I'll back you up, but you have to talk to Ruby first. Or she'll know that I'm in on it."

Blake cursed. The universe really did have a foul sense of humour.

"Right. Of course. Wait- you mean we're doing this now?" Weiss was going to pay for making her do this.

"Yep. Well what are you waiting for? Let's go slowpoke!" Without waiting for a reply, Nora pushed Blake toward the ex-mercenary with a frightening speed. The brunette swore that she could almost smell the rubber soles of her shoes burning. Glaring at Nora lightly, to which she got a thumbs up and a wink, Blake stiffly walked toward a sweaty looking Ruby who'd just finished a series of graceful manoeuvres with her monster of a weapon dubbed Crescent Rose.

"Ruby," She began, her eyebrows knotting when the other girl merely grunted in reply. "We need to talk."

"Then do it." Ruby replied without missing a beat. "I'm all ears."

She pulled out a cloth from her pocket and began wiping down her scythe, not even turning to look at Blake. Standing a little ways away from the two girls, Nora observed the scene and winced. She'd forgotten how cold the silver eyed girl could be when she dealt with other people.

Blake bristled, her hands twitching in irritation. "Fine." She snapped. "The three of us need a break from the training you've been making us suffer through. Our bodies can't take much of all _this_."

She gestured to the bodies of their near comatose teammates.

Ruby finally looked at her, her eyebrow raising. "Well, you look fine to me. In fact, you barely even look winded. Doesn't this mean that we should take it up a notch?"

" _No_ it does not." Came heated reply. "Stop changing the subject. You've been drilling us non-stop these past few months and what we need right now is to relax."

Ruby shrugged. "It's not my problem. You can relax in your own time."

"But you're the one who's taking up all of our free time!" Blake accused, imagining her hands going around the other girl's neck to strangle her. Ruby's mouth twisted into a half-smile as she tucked the cloth back into her pocket and switched crescent back into its compact form.

"Tough luck."

Before the situation could escalate any further, Nora decided it was time to butt in. Blake was turning into an unhealthy colour of red, and if she didn't stop them now, the girl was going to end up with a broken finger or worse. The last person to defy Ruby ended up six feet underground. In pieces.

She sighed. Swooping in on their conversation, if one could even call it that, Nora tackled Ruby in a sudden hug.

Blake watched as Ruby's expression change into one of confusion, hugging the girl with one arm. They looked so mismatched, both personality and height wise, that she found it unbelievable that they were friends. She didn't even think that Ruby cared about people other than herself to begin with.

"Nora?" Ruby said, frowning. "I'm in the middle of conversation."

"Yep I know. And I heard everything~" Nora grinned, letting go of the taller girl. She stepped into the empty spot next to Blake, giving the girl what she thought was a sly wink. Blake resisted the urge to face-palm.

"I think you should listen to Blake! Your team has been on a winning streak lately, so why not go out and have some fun? Great idea, eh?"

"I'm preparing them for one on one matches, Nora. Not just for team battles."

"Buuut! Since they fought so awesomely in the team matches, they deserve a break. Isn't that right, Blake?"

She gave Blake a thumbs up, not noticing the odd looks Ruby was shooting the two of them. Ruby sighed. Nora had never been good at subtlety. Case in point.

Blake forced down the urge to crawl in a hole and die, and answered, "Right."

"See?" Nora rolled her eyes but ruffled Nora's hair, eliciting a laugh from the shorter girl. Blake shook her head at the warm display, not quite believing her eyes. It looked like the girl had some semblance of emotion after all. The adoration in those cold silver eyes bled out when she realised Blake was watching, and Ruby drew in a small breath.

"You've convinced me of the error of my ways." Ruby deadpanned. "You've been a great help Nora. You should go back, your team is looking for you."

She grunted when the orange haired girl squealed in delight and bid them both goodbye, sauntering back to the other side of the training room where Ren was now helping Jaune with his sit-ups. Pyrrha gave them a look of… _something_ , before welcoming her teammate back with a bright smile and an offer to spar, which was accepted readily.

Blake sighed. "Look I just-"

"Three days."

She blinked. "I'm…what?"

Ruby folded her arms, looking at Nora one last time before her focusing her attention on Blake. "Three days. That's all I'm going to give you three."

She snorted at the wide-eyed look the cat Faunus was giving her and shook her head. She pulled out her aviator shades and flipped them open, eyeing the slack jawed girl with an unreadable expression.

"And just to be clear, ask for help again and you'll have more to worry about than just sore muscles. Either you fight your own battles, or don't fight at all." Ruby finished, slipping her shades on and walking off.

Blake stared after her, biting her lip in a mixture of annoyance and embarrassment. Rubbing the string of her bow between her fingers, she walked back to the still forms of Yang and Weiss. She stopped beside the heiress and nudged her leg with the tip of her shoes.

"I hope you're happy." She muttered dryly. "I got us three days."

"One day, three days. I can't bring myself to care as long as I don't need to get up." Weiss sniped, slapping away the shoe with a shaky arm. Yang let out a breathy sigh of relief, eyes rolling into the back of her head.

* * *

The start of their three day break was an anticlimactic one.

The members of RWBY, excluding their leader, opted to lounge around in their beds for the entirety of the Saturday morning. Even Weiss, who was always up with the sun to finish up her assignments remained passed out on her luxurious bed until noon. Yang took it abit further, opting to only get out of bed after three when the growl of her stomach became too annoying.

Blake was the only one who'd left the room before twelve. When she realised that Ruby was staying true to her word of leaving the three of them to their own devices, she quickly gathered an entire day's worth of novels and headed straight for beacon library after a heavy breakfast.

Once through the double doors, Blake waded through small batches of students strategically hidden behind the shelves, who were mostly gossiping to their hearts content, and felt her heart leap to her throat when her favourite spot came into view.

Natural light filtered in through the small, circular window, the stream of light not drawing any attention as it was obscured by the towering bookshelf in front of it. This was the reading spot of dreams. It was bright enough to read without hurting her eyes, and it was the most isolated place the library had to offer. And considering how huge the library was, Blake was just grateful to have stumbled upon it when she did.

The small, leather armchair underneath the window was squished between the two bookshelves on either sides, and it had enough stuffing inside it to make long reading sessions comfortable. With a sigh of pure bliss, the cat Faunus stacked her armful of books near the leg of the chair, and settled into its comforting arms.

Picking up the topmost novel off her stack, she admired the beautiful limited edition cover of the Ninja's of love before beginning to read. It was the third novel and like the previous books it was a standalone story.

She breezed through the erotica filled pages with delight, amber eyes glimmering with untold happiness as she'd started reading the latest instalment in the franchise, where a villainous ninja battled a fearsome samurai general for the heart of a village girl.

Blake gritted her teeth in anticipation as the evil ninja struck down the girl's betrothed with poisoned sake, presented as a gift for the upcoming wedding. In an instant, the village guards were upon him, surrounding his only way of escape through a rocky mountain pass.

She clutched the book tightly, eyes widening when the ninja was pierced by a soaring arrow as he attempted escape, the darkness of the night proving to be the obstacle which felled him. Thankfully, the girl who he had killed for saved him by the skin of his teeth, leading the guards out of the village with a fake trail of cattle blood after dragging him away. The samurai general was among the guards, eager to get rid of his rival to capture the heart of his beloved once and for all.

"Finally…" Blake breathed, grinning at the paragraph of words. The ninja and the girl would finally be alone. "Ten chapters in and still nothing. This must be a new record."

Lifting her head to make sure no one was watching her read…well- _smut_ , she dived back into the story, picking up where she had stopped.

The girl was now tending to the injured ninja's wounds. The ninja watched wordlessly as tears of misery trickled down her cheeks, _unhappy_ that he was being pursued, _unhappy_ that her finance –however disgusting he may had been– died at the hands of her lover. Blake could almost imagine the scene playing out before her very eyes, a scene that was for her and her eyes alone.

 _I flinch when she reaches out to touch my face. The dried blood on my skin was starting to flake, and I didn't want to stain her tender hands with the colour of sin._

" _Stop it. Just-"_

 _She glares and suddenly puts her palm over my wound. I have to bite down a yelp, my anger flaring at her action. But my anger is gone, whisked away by the low howl of the wind, its voice whistling in from the small holes of the secret hut. I cannot stay mad at this woman I have sworn to love, sworn to protect. My soul is black, and when I'm with her, the ability to do absolutely_ _ **anything**_ _doesn't seem like such a bad thing._

" _Look at me." She whispers._

 _I swallow roughly but don't heed her words. My eyes stay down, flitting over the blood stained arrow on a metal plate that was embedded in my chest up to a few hours ago, and let my gaze travel toward her slipper clad feet. I can see the scrapes and cuts that mar her fair skin, and my heart aches for her._

" _Look. At. Me." Her whisper turns into a demand, and I cannot resist that powerful, yet captivating voice that draws my eyes upwards. I meet her gaze, her eyes boring into me and seeing my very essence. I am evil. I have killed for gold, and murdered for much less. As much as I wanted her in my arms, to touch her- to_ _ **taste**_ _her- she was deserving of a more, cleaner soul than one such as I._

" _I already am." I breathe the words out, the pain in my chest spreading when the edges of her eyes crinkle in amusement. She will be the death of me. To my surprise, I feel her hands trail up my thigh and onto my chest. The softness of her hands belies the intensity of her gaze, and I can almost see my rotten heart beat wildly under my ribcage._

" _Then you will listen when I tell you, that what you have done today is foolish." Her voice penetrates the haze of lust I have fallen under. I feel the shame at my actions prick at me once more, but I don't feel any remorse for what I have done. And I know that she realizes this too._

 _She takes in a deep breath, her bosom heaving. "I could have lost you. Had the arrow not missed your lung by mere inches, the only kiss you would experience would have been the kiss of death."_

" _And you would have mourned my death forever, and the general would be unable to capture your heart." I say, turning my eyes away at her flinch._

" _My heart has been in your hands since the beginning. I wonder why you do not believe that."_

" _Because it is a foolhardy thing to believe. Would you tell a lame man that he could walk again someday? Would you tell a mother that her dead child may rise from its grave? I will never believe you without any proof." I sigh. "And proof, is something you do not have."_

 _She slides in closer to me, her mint scented breath tickling my nose. Her hands descend, pulling at the sash which holds my yukata together. I freeze, and she takes that chance to gently pin me against the weathered wood of the hut, and pulls the sash free. I gasp when my bottom half is exposed, and reach up to cover it, but she does not give me the chance. With one hand on my shoulder, I watch with wide eyes as she uses her other hand to pull one side of her yukata down, exposing the supple skin underneath._

 _This is indeed the stuff of dreams._

" _Proof. The proof is right here." She gestures downwards, but my eyes dare not follow. She lets out a giggle, wearing a smirk that could capture the hearts of a thousand men that was directed solely at me. And then suddenly, she reaches down to–_

Blake jumped at the sound of a book snapping shut. Shoving the novel against her chest, she looked up with guilty eyes and saw the back of one Ruby Rose. It was easy to recognize, simply because of her trademark straight-as-a-rod spine, and the crimson tipped hair that curled outwards as it reached the base of her neck.

Blake couldn't stop herself from hissing in irritation as her leader turned to face her. Ruby was wearing her usual neutral expression, but she could see the slight amusement dancing in the pools of liquid mercury that stared back at her.

"What?" The crimson haired girl tucked the book she was holding under her arms.

"What are you doing here?" Blake snapped, her nails digging into the felt book cover. Why couldn't this girl just leave her alone, dammit?!

Ruby rolled her eyes, gesturing to the shelf full of books. "Looking for a book. Obviously."

"Of all the places…" The brunette mumbled under her breath. "What kind of book are you looking for anyway? This is the history section."

"This." Ruby held up the heavy leather tome with bright gold letters ' _Taxidermy_ ' emblazoned across the brown surface. Ignoring Blake's stunned look, she shrugged and started walking in the direction of the librarian's counter. Ruby saw no reason to stick around for any longer since she had already found what she was looking for. Not even bothering to look at Blake, she breezed past the girl and disappeared around the bend of the large shelf.

Blake sighed, and shook her head in disbelief. The ex-mercenary was an even bigger enigma than she had expected. Hunkering down to continue the story once more, Blake jumped when Ruby suddenly peeked around the corner, surprised by the abrupt appearance.

"When training resumes, you'll be doing extra for reading porn in a public area."

The cat Faunus could almost feel the colour draining out of her face, and shrieked angrily. Pulling her arm back, Blake flung the book with all her might. The book hit the side of the shelf with a loud thunk, Ruby already nowhere to be found, and Blake was left empty handed as she stared at the ground, breathing heavily in embarrassment.

* * *

 **AN** : It…was longer than I'd expected. So it's going to be a three shot. :3 Hope you guys are fine with this lol, I find it funny all my two-shots are becoming longer. Probably because Ruby wants more screen time dammit!

 **Omake** ( _aka I couldn't fit this anywhere but I liked it so much I couldn't not to show you guys_ )

"Guys…" Yang breathed, "I think our leader has a hard on for the little mermaid. Or she might be Ursula in disguise."

Blake groaned, and rubbed her temples. " _Shut up_ Yang."

Weiss turned to look at her blonde counterpart. "Don't be a fool. At least Ursula had the decency to grant Ariel her wish without making her swim around the entire ocean first." She said.

Blake threw her hands up as Yang broke out in giggles. Why did Ozpin put her into a team full of smartasses?


	3. Chapter 3

**AN** : Yay so I finally completed the final chapter! Thanks for all the support you guys have shown so far, I have come to the conclusion that y'all really _really_ like ladybug. :D And sorry I haven't answered some of the questions in your review. Just to clear some stuffs up, Ruby is the same age as in canon, so she's 15. I hope this chap lives up to your expectations, or at least fulfils your need for ladybug :')

Also, in light of the recent news I hope that everyone in Paris, Japan, and Lebanon are safe and recovering from the terrible events.

* * *

"Slow down, Yang-" Blake yelped as she was dragged down the airship platform by the excited blonde. Using a series of skilful body twists, she managed to avoid any collisions with the people Yang pushed past, nodding apologetically when they frowned. When the two finally came to a stop at a traffic light, Blake took advantage of their sudden pause to pinch the back of her captor's hand.

"OW!" The boxer yelped, flinging her hand away. "Sheesh, you could've just asked."

Blake rolled her eyes. "You wouldn't have listened." She said, smiling a little when Yang giggled mischievously.

"Yep, I wouldn't. Good point Blakey."

The smile melted into scowl, the brunette glowering at the nickname. But she let it go, because it was much better than the one that Yang had given Weiss. The heiress had thrown a fit when Yang yelled ' _Mcflurry_ ' across crowded cafeteria, and Blake had watched with no little amusement as Weiss chased her around with a fork, screaming bloody murder.

"Whatcha smiling at?" Yang looked at her team mate curiously.

Blake shook her head, banishing the smile when she was addressed. Yang shrugged and whooped loudly when it was time for them to cross. They made their way down the road in relative silence, the buzz of Vale's streets washing over them. The cat Faunus looked up at the street signs they'd passed, her eyebrows furrowing when they entered the more…questionable part of town. She wasn't afraid for herself, but rather, for Yang. There were many Faunus militant groups here and some of them didn't take kindly to a 'human' trespassing on their turf.

"Yang, where are we going?" She asked, looking around cautiously. There were still a fair amount of people on the streets, but they were definitely of a different variety compared to the usual citizens.

"We're going to have some fun remember? I told you I was gonna bring you to one of the best spots in town." Yang answered, arching her brow. "Junior's club to be exact."

Blake tried to remember what Yang had told her before dragging her onto the airship. She distinctly heard her say something about drinks, and having a good time but Blake assumed that they were going to a café of some sort. Definitely not a club.

"Ah." She said sourly. "You _do_ know how much I hate loud places right?"

Yang shrugged. "Eh, it's too late to turn back now. Might as well have some fun since we're here."

"If you mean standing in a corner until we leave or until you pass out, then yes, I'll be having ' _fun'_." Blake deadpanned.

"Aw, c'mon Blake. Lighten up a little." Yang clapped her back heartily, smiling when the girl rounded on her with an annoyed glare. "Today's our last day to let loose. Ruby's Spartan training is starting up tomorrow and I don't want to die without partying hard first."

Blake chuckled. "It wasn't _that_ bad."

The blonde snorted. "For you maybe. And besides classes finished early today. It's like the universe is just screaming at us to let our hair down!" She ran a hand through her hair to make a point.

When Blake didn't reply, Yang slowed her footsteps and looked to the side in confusion. Seeing no one there, she turned her head a little bit more and groaned when she saw her partner several steps behind her, frozen in place. Following the brunette's excited gaze, Yang blanched when she realised what she was looking at.

"Blakeeeeee!" She whined.

The brunette in question shot her a large grin, jokingly waving her hand in a mock goodbye.

"We're taking bumblebee next time." Yang grouched, glaring at the quaint bookstore wedged innocently between a diner and an empty building. She could see the stars in Blake's eyes as the girl started to inch towards it, her excitement comparable to that of a child desperately wanting to go into an ice cream parlour. Knowing that they wouldn't leave this place for ages if they went in, Yang threw her hands up in defeat. It looks like Junior's club would be seeing only one gorgeous girl today.

"Fine! Go for it." She grumbled. "But don't blame me if you're bored out of your mind."

Blake winked, feeling particularly playful. "I doubt it, Yang. I seriously doubt it." She laughed.

Her partner let out a sigh and mimicked the action of swatting a fly. "Suit yourself, Blake. I'll see you when I see you."

Blake waved goodbye to her partner, the blonde stomping away dramatically, before entering the bookstore. The familiar musky scent of weathered pages and the sharper, more distinct smell of newer books instantly brought a smile to her face. The store was fairly empty save for a few people that were littered between the shelves, and she immediately made a beeline toward the romance section.

Taking a few moment to browse through the generous selection ranging from teen novels to the much raunchier kind, Blake picked up two books whose blurbs had caught her eye. She grinned. The store had a few copies for reading, and behind those copies were the ones that were still in plastic wrapping. Blake peered around the large area since the shelves were only tall enough to reach her nose and almost keened in delight when she saw a row of plush chairs lined against the wall at the back of the store.

There was only one person seated so there was plenty of space for her to rest her derriere and enjoy herself for a little while. Scratch that, a _long_ while.

With a spring to her step, Blake stepped out of the narrow space between the shelves and made her way over. Approaching the chairs with no small amount of happiness, the cat Faunus spared a glance to the side and froze.

Ruby uncrossed her legs, pulling down her aviator shades just enough for silver orbs to meet shocked amber ones. The book in her hands snapped shut with a muted thud, and with an elbow on her knee and hand under her chin, the ex-mercenary graced her with an unkind grin.

* * *

Ruby sighed when the cat Faunus flipped the page with enough strength to rip off an arm of a beowolf. The crimson haired girl almost expected the book to be torn in half as well, judging by the downright annoyed stare Blake was giving it.

"If you're uncomfortable, feel free to go somewhere else." She said dryly.

Blake looked up to glare at her before returning to her book. "Over my dead body." She gritted out. There was _no way_ she was going to let Ruby ruin her day. She was going to enjoy the books with or without her. Taking in a deep breath, she visualised her team leader as a potted plant -or as a cactus- and tried to concentrate once more.

Ruby snorted as the brunette tried her best to ignore her and looked at the three seats between them. If you asked her, Ruby would tell you that she'd rather Blake be sitting all the way to the _other_ side of the bookstore. Unfortunately, those seats were taken, and she doubted that Glynda would let her go with a mere slap to the wrist if she threw them out the window.

Threading her fingers together and stretching her hands over her head, Ruby scanned her surroundings with a critical eye. If anything, Blake had probably gotten the wrong idea. She wasn't here to will away her day around a bunch of books. Glancing at the clock, Ruby let her hand rest on the gun strapped to her waist. Idly, she began recounting how many concealed knives she'd brought when Blake suddenly spoke up.

"…What are you doing here?" The cat Faunus asked.

Ruby snorted. Now she knew why curiosity killed the cat. "Classified."

"Why am I not surprised?" She shook her head. Blake should have known that Ruby wouldn't answer a question willingly.

"Because you have an overactive imagination."

Blake felt her temper flare at the look Ruby tossed her, her tone as dry as sandpaper.

"I-I, _what!_ I do not!" She defended.

Ruby's lips twisted into a small smirk. "Does the book 'Ninja's of Love' ring any-"

Blake jumped when Ruby suddenly dived onto the ground. The window facing the street exploded in a shower of broken glass. Senses instantly on high alert, she threw herself to the ground as well, ignoring the loud yells of surprise and fear from the other patrons of the store. There was an ear-splitting crack when the door exploded inwards, bits of metal and wooden splinters raining down on the front counter.

Her cat ears twitched in agitation, catching the sounds of heavy boots stomping into the store.

The ground pressing painfully into her chest, she looked up to see Ruby's annoyed face. Pools of silver drifted over to meet her gaze, and Blake nearly started in surprise when the ex-mercenary put a finger to her lips. Sending a hard stare at her teammate, she mouthed ' _How many?'_

Blake shut her eyes, trying to remember what she'd heard. ' _Four'_ she replied, feeling her ears flattening against her scalp when a few more shots were fired. There wasn't any sounds of bodies hitting the floor, so she assumed that this wasn't a robbery of any sort. The lack of demands was also a dead giveaway. She glanced at Ruby.

Face impassive, the crimson haired girl silently reached for her gun. Grabbing it from her holster, she lay against the carpet, listening closely. The two could hear the attackers talking about something but they would most likely start searching the store soon. Ruby released a small breath, her concentration muffling out all sounds. Tension draining out of her shoulders, Ruby steadied her grip on the gun, the cold metal settled snugly in her hands.

Blake blinked. Ruby disappeared in a red blur.

The cat Faunus had barely raised her head above ground when Ruby fired the first shot.

One of the four attackers didn't move until it was too late. The bullet sliced through his neck cleanly, the figure letting out a horrified gurgle before dropping to the ground with a loud squelch. The man beside Ruby's first victim backpedalled furiously, kicking his other partners out of the way as more bullets whizzed through the air. " _Get down_!" He yelled.

Ruby felt one side of her mouth twitch when her first shot connected. It was almost too easy. Even if the attackers had aura, their necks usually had the least amount of aura coating it, which made it the prime target of any sniper wielders. But then again, she didn't even need a sniper rifle to make that shot. "Amateurs." She whispered, firing a few more rounds.

When the other three dived downwards, Ruby made her move. Using her semblance to propel herself toward them, she seemingly phased into existence in a whirlwind of rose petals. The attacker's head whipped up to meet her eyes, and she dodged a panicked punch directed at her solar plexus, before delivering a round house kick straight to the man's temple. The force of the kick sent him flying toward the shelves, knocking his other comrade over in the process. As one of the two downed men tried to pry his unconscious partner off him, the last one standing growled fiercely, pointing his assault rifle at her. Grinning with pure malice, the man held his gun steady and unleashed a furious stream of gunfire.

His grin fell when the bullets were deflected in a shower of bright sparks, and he reeled back in anger- unclipping the empty ammo box and throwing it aside. Unfortunately, Ruby was upon him as soon as the gunfire had ceased. Shoving _Buckshot_ back into its holster, she pulled out a wickedly pointed dagger that had been strapped to her sides and lunged at him. Red tipped hair danced wildly as she hooked an arm around necks and slashed downwards.

The man let out a scream of pain when his hand was severed from his wrist, the rifle clattering noisily as it smashed against the ground. Thick, viscous liquid spurted from his wound, but he barely had time to register the searing pain before Ruby caught him in a headlock. Without oxygen flowing to his rapidly beating heart, he didn't put up a fight before blacking out. Dumping his body next to his fallen comrades, she looked up and felt her eyes widen.

The man who'd been knocked over previously broke out into a run toward one of the frightened patrons cowering against the wall. "Tch." She spat, annoyance surging through her.

Preparing to launch herself to intercept him, she'd stopped in her tracks when a shadow materialised in front of him. Blake grimaced as she felt gambol shroud's blade plunging through his bullet proof vest and into his stomach. The Kevlar didn't stand a chance against the aura coated blade, and he let out a pained grunt before falling to the ground. Blake winced when she saw the pool of blood which'd started to form underneath him, and she hoped that the wound wasn't fatal. She didn't need another life on her conscience.

"You should call the police." Blake told the cashier, internally wincing when he glanced at the blood on gambol shroud. The poor kid nodded shakily and stumbled away, disappearing behind the back of the shop.

Ruby gave Blake an appreciative nod and bent down to inspect the only man who wasn't staining the carpet dark red. Ripping his jacket open and rolling her eyes at how easily the material tore, she groped around and finally let out a pleased murmur when she'd found his scroll.

"So, dear leader." Blake said sarcastically as she approached Ruby, "Are you going to tell me why these men were after you? I think I deserve to know after traumatizing everyone in the store."

Ruby shrugged. "I was supposed to meet an old friend of mine."

"You have friends?"

Ignoring the jab, she continued. "And apparently, someone's gotten it into their heads that Beacon has made me soft." Ruby said, a hint of amusement in her voice.

Blake sighed. "Some friends of yours." She said bitterly, wiping the blood of her weapon.

Ruby slid the scroll into her pocket, just as several patrol cars pulled in front of the store, the red and blue sirens screeching like a banshee. Letting out a sigh of irritation, she strapped the dagger back under her shirt after flicking the blood off it with a flick of her wrist. The two shared a look, Ruby pushing up her aviator shades before they bolted out of the store.

* * *

"Just go home, Blake."

The cat Faunus smirked when she heard a hint of irritation in Ruby's normally monotone voice. She shrugged, squeezing her arm harder. Ruby made a noise of disbelief, resisting the urge to smash the girl's head into the nearest lamppost.

For the first time in her life, the ex-mercenary felt like a fish out of water. And who could blame her? Stone cold killers didn't normally have beautiful girls hanging off their arms. She threw a disgruntled look at Blake, who had taken to walking _extremely_ close to her, and tried not to sigh.

"This is highly unnecessary." Ruby muttered.

Feeling her cat ears twitching excitedly beneath the bow, the brunette pushed down the chuckle which threatened to escape her. Her leader's discomfort was bringing copious amounts of joy to her than she thought was humanly possible.

"Oh hush. And keep your eyes peeled, you said the park was supposed to be near area." Blake said.

Ruby rolled her eyes at being told what to do, but scanned their surroundings anyway. After hacking into the scroll she'd obtained, she found a message detailing where their payment would be stashed, and how to find it. Deducing that her 'friend' had gotten a middle man to hire the third rate mercenaries, Ruby decided that gutting this middle man of his, was the next best thing to exacting her revenge on him. The cowardly bastard was probably hiding out in another city anyway.

"Found the entrance." She said. Steering off the sidewalk the pair strode through the ornate looking entrance of the park. She remained as cold as ever while Blake felt her heartbeat rise in trepidation. Her grip on Ruby's arm loosening, she glanced at each person they'd passed, half expecting to be stabbed and left to bleed to death on the ground.

Blake bit her lip, a rush of gratefulness flooding through her when Ruby's hand brushed against her thigh, making her body tense for a completely different reason. The touch was electric, making her cheeks blossom with heat. Ruby felt her eyebrows rise when a shudder rippled through the girl clinging to her arm but she kept silent. Cautious silver orbs flitted from left to right as they entered the main body of the park, a small pond in the middle of it reflecting the light of the setting sun.

"What were we looking for again?"

"A bush of some sort." Ruby replied distantly. "The message said it would be next to a bench."

Blake shot her an annoyed look. "There must be at _least_ half a dozen benches in this area alone." She sighed, letting her cheek rest against Ruby's arm.

The crimson haired girl stiffened at the contact, growling morosely at how her body had reacted to Blake. The last person she had touched was Winter, and that had been _ages_ ago. It was no wonder her libido was totally out of whack. Resigning herself to the fate of being teased by the infuriating cat Faunus, they continued walking around the park silently, looking up when the street lights began to lit up as they walked past.

When they neared the fork in the road, leading to two separate areas of the park, Ruby suddenly halted and shoved Blake into the nearest park bench. The brunette yelped in surprise, her back scraping against the wood. "What're you doing?" She hissed, her face flushing when she looked up to see Ruby's face hovered centimetres above hers.

The smell of mint wafting off her tickled senses, and Blake struggled not to lose herself into the calming scent.

"Sniper." She whispered harshly, her breath escaping in controlled gasps.

Blake froze, not fighting against the grip any longer. Raising her head as high as she could, the cat Faunus caught the glint of a sniper's scope, the last vestiges of light from the setting sun causing it to shimmer. Even if they a generous amount of aura, they would be sitting ducks if the sniper was using aura piercing rounds.

The crimson haired girl didn't say a word, merely pressing their bodies together. Blake could feel the girl's taught stomach muscles through the thin layer of fabric separating their skin, her mouth drying when Ruby gazed at her intensely. Trying not to let shivers rack her body, she groped around for something to say.

"W-what now?" She said, amber eyes flitting from silver orbs to the figure hidden in a tree on the opposite side of the pond.

Without a single word, Ruby leaned in and kissed her.

Eyes widened as she felt Ruby's chapped lips press against hers. She tasted like mint, and surprisingly, a hint of chocolate and cinnamon. It was a strange combination, especially when the person in question could snap someone's neck without batting an eye. It didn't escape Blake's notice that the kiss was startlingly gentle, nothing like the hard and fast kisses stolen from her old partners. Her eyes fluttered shut, hands reaching up and sliding underneath the dress shirt.

Ruby groaned into the kiss when a pair of smooth hands slid over her stomach. The hands roamed across her abs hungrily, occasionally pausing in their movements to sink a nail into the defined muscles they'd found there. The eager touches made the heat in her stomach coil tightly, and her own hands began moving- her fingertips dancing across Blake's exposed shoulders.

When the hands didn't move from her shoulders Blake growled impatiently, and raked her fingernails across Ruby's stomach. The action was enough to make Ruby's temper flare and in an instant, her hands plunged downwards to grab the shapely hips, fingers tightening around them.

Blake gasped against her mouth, and Ruby took advantage of her surprise by deepening the kiss, the cat Faunus's body pushed deeper into the bench.

After what seemed like a blissful eternity, the two finally parted for air.

"T-The sniper's gone." Blake panted heavily, her gaze firmly locked on Ruby's pink, wet lips. She ached to kiss them again, but the ex-mercenary was already standing, pulling her up in the process. Her body sighed in relief, no longer pushed up against the uncomfortable grain of the park bench, but Blake couldn't seem to think straight what with the taste of chocolate and mint still fresh on her tongue.

Ruby breathed in deeply, looking toward the tree that was previously occupied. Pulling Blake across the park to inspect it, she shook her head in annoyance when she saw footprints littering the soft soil beneath the tree, accompanied by broken branches and a still glowing cigarette stub.

"Shit." She cursed, running a hand through her shoulder length hair. "Can't believe the asshole nearly got the drop on us. But at least we still have the scroll."

She patted her pocket lightly, a smirk starting to form. Once they were back at Beacon, she would be calling in a few…favours to make sure that friend of hers would be force fed poison through a straw and thrown into the sea with cinder blocks strapped to his ankles.

Satisfied at what she'd found, Ruby turned to address Blake, only to be pulled down for a hard kiss. Blake shoved her tongue down her throat, delighted at Ruby's gasp of surprise. She drew back before the kiss could deepen and shot her a smug smile.

Blake grinned. "An eye for an eye." she said. Ignoring Ruby's sputter of indignation, she made to walk away when her wrist was grabbed. She shrieked in surprise as she was roughly spun around and Ruby surged forward to claim her lips in a similarly fierce kiss, biting down hard enough on the supple flesh to draw blood.

Ruby pulled back with a satisfied smile, licking her lips as she savoured the metallic tang. Pulling the aviator shades out of her pockets, she slipped them on while Blake tried to gather herself.

"I _always_ win." She growled, lifting the cat Faunus's chin with her hand. "So don't get cocky."

Blake stared at her breathlessly, heart stuttering as her lips twisting into an annoyed scowl.

"I have three years to reach your level. So prepare to get your ass whooped." She said.

Ruby let go of her chin as determined amber eyes scoured her face. For the first time in years, she felt her blood heat up at the challenge and smirked.

"I'd like to see you try."

It was Blake's turn to sputter when Ruby turned on her heel and walked away, and she made a noise of irritation before running to catch up to her. The ex-mercenary tilted her head up to stare at the inky blackness that swallowed up the once vibrant blue sky.

Her stay at Beacon would prove to be an interesting one indeed.

* * *

 _The end_


End file.
